A lighter and tighter Chevrolet Camaro this way comes. We last checked in on Chevy’s future pony car a few months ago, when we published aerial spy photographs of the car being evaluated at General Motors’ proving ground. That prototype was well-camouflaged, but its general shape gave it away as the 2016 Camaro. The car pictured here is clearly a Camaro, and its details are now on clearer display—and from a more normal vantage point.

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Now that the Camaro has shed its bulky cover-up, we can speak to the car’s design. The form-fitting camouflage on this prototype reveals styling that’s largely evolutionary in its graphics. Thin headlights once again flow into a full-width grille, only a large central lower intake now resides in the front fascia, and the hood has sprouted some softer contours. The car’s overhangs seem shorter, and the greenhouse takes on more of a fastback style. Overall, the Camaro appears more lithe, and it bears more than a passing resemblance to the Camaro-based, GM-designed Bumblebee from the latest Transformers movie.

The car’s svelte appearance is harmoniously congruent with what is expected to be some actual svelteness. Chevrolet’s quest for a lighter-weight Camaro starts and ends with the new car’s platform. Unlike today’s model, which utilizes chopped-down full-size-sedan underpinnings, the 2016 model will switch to GM’s rear-drive Alpha architecture, which is flexible enough to sit beneath both the Cadillac ATS and CTS. Size-wise, the Camaro will hew closer to the ATS. (Those earlier spy photos appear to confirm that the Chevy’s wheelbase will be close—if not identical—to the Cadillac ATS coupe’s.)

Stripping weight from the Camaro can only help its expected range of V-6 and naturally aspirated and supercharged V-8 engine options, and it could even open the door for GM’s corporate turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder. Adding the four to the mix could give Chevy a way to stick it to the four-pot 2015 Ford Mustang EcoBoost. A six-speed manual transmission carries on, while GM’s new eight-speed automatic should serve as the self-shifter option.

Eager Camaro fans fear not: Time is on your side in the wait for the new car. As we previously reported, the new Chevrolet Camaro coupe will debut next year before going on sale late in 2015 as a ’16 model. Pricing shouldn’t stray far from the current ’Maro’s $24,550 base sticker, and a convertible version eventually will follow the coupe to market.